Against Those Who Are Unwilling To Confess That The Holy Virgin Is Theotokos

by Cyril of Alexandria

The term Theotokos helped to establish the truth that Jesus Christ, who was born of the Virgin Mary, was the preexisting Son of God who also became man without ceasing to be God in order to recapitulate in Himself the entire humanity and work out an eternal salvation for it. The point here is that Jesus Christ is the same Son of God who as true God "was born" ineffably and eternally from the Father and as true man was born in time and according to the flesh from the Virgin for the completion of the ages.Jesus Christ is one person who unites in Himself two natures, the divine and the human, and thus deifies the human by leading it to participate in the perfections of the divine. The term Theotokos brings out all these aspects of the mystery of the Incarnation and stresses its soteriological import. The present text can be described as a model of Patristic theological discourse. It is an anti-heretical treatise, which refers to a central dogma of Christian theology, the doctrine of Christ.

Genres: Theology

156 pages, Paperback

First published September 30, 2004

About the author

Cyril of Alexandria (Greek: Κύριλλος Ἀλεξανδρείας; c. 376 – 444) was the Patriarch of Alexandria from 412. to 444. He was enthroned when the city was at the height of its influence and power within the Roman Empire. Cyril wrote extensively and was a leading protagonist in the Christological controversies of the later 4th and 5th centuries. He was a central figure in the First Council of Ephesus in 431, which led to the deposition of Nestorius as Patriarch of Constantinople.

Cyril is counted among the Church Fathers and the Doctors of the Church, and his reputation within the Christian world has resulted in his titles Pillar of Faith and Seal of all the Fathers, but Theodosius II, the Roman Emperor, condemned him for behaving like a "proud pharaoh", and the Nestorian bishops at the Council of Ephesus declared him a heretic, labelling him as a "monster, born and educated for the destruction of the church."

Cyril is well-known due to his dispute with Nestorius and his supporter Patriarch John of Antioch, whom Cyril excluded from the Council of Ephesus for arriving late. He is also known for his expulsion of Novatians and Jews from Alexandria.

The Roman Catholic Church did not commemorate Saint Cyril in the Tridentine Calendar: it added his feast only in 1882, assigning to it the date of 9 February. The 1969 revision moved it to 27 June, considered to be the day of the saint's death, as celebrated by the Coptic Orthodox Church. The same date has been chosen for the Lutheran calendar. The Eastern Orthodox Church and Eastern Catholic Church celebrate his feast day on 9 June and also, together with Pope Athanasius I of Alexandria, on 18 January.

Reviews

[Christian Proano · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short Christological treatise, really half the book since there is a Greek edition of the text. Even in the translation one can read Cyril forceful attitude in his writings, however, he has a way of showing how the Logos (hypostasis) does remain one even though "out of both essences."

[Mina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book had an introduction and one of important St Cyril letters on defending the Theotokos, in English and in Greek. Unless you are a scholar, I would recommend skipping the introduction and start on the actual letter.


I had this book on my shelf for 10 years, delaying to read it until I am ‘in the mood’. Also, I have read some biblical exegesis of St. Cyril translated to arabic, and they were extremely hard to read. Which made me ‘delay’ reading this one. However, I was surprised by the ease and fluency of this translation.

The book is written for researchers or academics. It’s introduction which I dreaded critiqued one of the scholars’ view on St Cyril’s letter. The French scholar had things to say about its authenticity and the author of this book responds to these points. I got bored of the academic debate, skipping it and started on the translation of the letter. It was easy read and directed to the average Christian reader. No academic jargon.

I hope you get to enjoy this book as much as I did.